Saturday, December 27, 2008

As it gets closer to Michael arriving (which is still a few months away) and birthdays coming up, I think about how much the girls have grown and changed. It's so hard to believe Shelby turns 5 in a few weeks.Lyndsey just amazes me how tiny and quiet she was as a baby. Now, she's full of spunk and just a talkative, active, growing girl!

It makes me cry thinking about it. Anyways, I can't wait to see how Michael compliments these two. We have two ends of the spectrum (reserved and wild) so maybe he'll be somewhere in the middle- for my sanity anyways!

Christmas seemed more hectic this year even though we didn't go anywhere. Nothing went as planned but what does when you have young children and you're pregnant?! Two days before Christmas, Lyndsey (with Shelby watching beside her) decided to unwrap most of the gifts under the tree while Mommy was gone to Wal-mart. It's funny now, it wasn't so funny rewrapping them. We did our annual Christmas cookies and Christmas Eve service which went pretty much as planned. The Christmas lights...not so much. Don't get me wrong, the lights at BLORA are nice, but not 2 hours in the suburban with cranky children at 10pm nice. I vote next year we just drive around and look at lights- that way I can still watch Christmas Vacation which I didn't get to this year! After the lights, the girls and I came home and fed the reindeer with special food so they would find our house. It was funny how excited they were to do it!

Christmas day was hectic just because we had to get lunch ready early so Dane could go to bed since he is back on midnight shift again. The girls loved what Santa brought them. Everyone got lots of nice things again this year. Shelby raced through opening them and didn't even realize what all she had until later in the day. Lyndsey became overwhelmed by all of it, thankfully Aunt Heather was there to finish opening them for her! Our lunch was wonderful- my homemade enchiladas actually turned out very well. I was impressed with myself!

The day after Christmas, Dane's parents came in and we received more wonderful gifts. The abundance of new toys took a toll on Mommy. I couldn't fathom where it was all going to be put away but Nana and Aunt Heather helped fix the storage issues...for now.

Thursday, December 11, 2008

Last night was the Family Christmas Party at the church. The girls had a blast decorating their cookies and filling up on candy and such that Dane and I don't normally let them have. Shelby made her cookies by herself and she was so proud. Lyndsey did most by herself- she just needed help spreading the icing. Can you believe all the choices they had? And to think I had to take them home and put them to bed...it was not so much fun!:)

Shelby was so excited because her friend, Emma, was there too! Shelby and Emma are best buddies at Pre-K and dance class! We were glad she could come!

Tuesday, December 9, 2008

Between pregnancy and the holiday season being in full swing, I'm a little bit behind on blogging. So to update you...

We decorated the Christmas tree early this year. We took advantage of Aunt Heather being here the weekend before Thanksgiving and put it up.

We went to the Temple Christmas parade despite the cold weather. It was the first Christmas parade we had been to as a family. It was also Lyndsey's very first parade. They had a good time despite it running way past bedtime. Lyndsey's favorite part were the cheerleaders. Shelby's was the Kittens (THS's dance team). Go figure!

This was the girls favorite float...it came in 2nd place but we thought it should have been 1st.

Dane donated an hour of his time ringing the bell and collecting donations for the Salvation Army. It was part of the community outreach at the police department. The girls and I walked around Walmart while we waited. My brain wasn't working well or I would have taken a picture.That catches us up to now. The weather is finally cold and feels like Christmas time. We did Christmas card pictures today so be looking for cards soon!

Sunday, November 30, 2008

After Thanksgiving, we braved the I-35 traffic and headed to Mesquite to celebrate Nana Tingle's 95th birthday. We spent Friday evening letting the girls entertain Nana at her place. The girls were excited to see her-June was the last time they saw her. We stayed the night in a hotel which the girls were so excited about- of course, Lyndsey just likes it because she gets to sleep in the bed with Mommy.

Saturday was party day so we mingled with lots of family we hadn't seen in a quite a while. It was great to catch up with everyone. The girls are very social so they enjoyed being around the different people and telling them all kinds of random things. By the time we left, everyone was exhausted. The girls slept from the time we left the restaurant until we got home (that never happens)!

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving filled with family, friends, and travel. We had Thanksgiving early with Heather and Chuck and then had a full house for Thanksgiving Day. We enjoyed the family time we shared both times. We are very thankful for them all! I combined pictures from both days.

It has been a year full of many things to be thankful for... life, family, kids, new baby boy, God leading us each day, love, jobs, and too many more to list. I hope each of you had a great Thanksgiving!Heather & Chuck with Lyndsey

Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Since Shelby was in utero, she has been a Tech fan like her mommy and daddy. It is still evident in her today. She had a homework assignment to disguise Tom Turkey so he wouldn't be eaten. It has taken her days to decide what she wanted it to be. First, she wanted it to be a pig, then a cheerleader, next a clown. Finally, she decided she wanted it to be a Tech football player. I asked her if she wanted it to be Michael Crabtree or Graham Harrell. She said very matter of factly, "Graham Harrell, Mommy." We sat and worked on it and she glued and colored after I cut it out. She was so excited. She can't wait to take it to Mrs. Emmons tomorrow!

Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Yesterday was an exciting day at the Kantro house! We officially found out we are having a BOY! Dane is so excited, he's been beaming since he found out. I am excited, but not as excited as him. I'm not quite sure what to do with a boy but I guess I'll figure it out. Shelby wasn't too excited about having a brother but she'll come around. Lyndsey could care less- to her it's just a baby. Now I have to figure out how to transform Lyndsey's room into a little boy's room. It'll be fun to decorate with cars and trains instead of flowers and dolls!

Friday, November 7, 2008

The closer Tuesday gets the more excited I am! I should be more worried that my evaluation window opens Monday and my aides are so unpredictable who knows what they'll pull, but I can't stop thinking about the ultrasound. I don't know that I've been this anxious with the other ultrasounds. I really had gut feelings about the sex of the girls but this one I'm not sure. I think I know what this one is but I don't know if it's just because Dane wants it to be a boy so bad that I'm thinking it's another girl! Who knows??? We'll have to wait until Tuesday afternoon!

Saturday, November 1, 2008

Halloween was an exhausting night of fun and games for all! Mom and I took the girls to the CMN Great Pumpkin Party first and to Trunk or Treat afterwards. Dane had to work so we went and visited him when we were done.

Lyndsey aka "Cinderella"

Shelby aka "Minnie Mouse"

The girls had a great time playing games and going through the giant inflatables. Lyndsey even got to see Cinderella and Prince Charming. She was in awe of her and could only stare. We decided we will continue to go there each year because it benefits a great cause and the kids had a blast.

Lyndsey getting her ring from Cinderella

Shelby sliding down the huge slide of the inflatable obstacle course

By the time we got done at the first stop, the girls were already tired so Trunk or Treat was not quite as much fun. The girls did get to see all their friends dressed up so it was worth the stop. By the end of the night, we collected two big bowls full of candy (I didn't realize how much they had in their backpacks from school), so if you need some candy, please feel free to come by and take some!

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

We finally made it to the pumpkin patch this year. Lyndsey's 1 & 2 year old Bible Fellowship class met at the pumpkin patch to play and take pictures tonight. The kids loved it! They all climbed through the pumpkins and tried carrying them around. They were amazed by all the different sizes, shapes, and textures. I still can't believe how hard it is to take a picture of Shelby and Lyndsey together! I can only imagine what it will be like when I have three to wrangle for a picture...